Australia cautious over Timor assistance
May 24, 2006 - 8:04AM
Australia wants to ensure there is bipartisan support in East Timor before it provides military intervention to the fledgling nation, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says.
Australia has warships and troops on standby ready to assist amid growing unrest in the former
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Mr Downer said the situation in East Timor was dangerous.
"I've received reports from our embassy in Dili this morning of further outbreaks of fighting between government forces and an opposition group near a place called Tasi Tolu which is on the outskirts of Dili," he said.
Australia is continuing to talk with the Timorese government about whether it wants Australian help.
Mr Downer said he spoke to his East Timorese counterpart Jose Ramos Horta just before Question Time.
"We have had some discussions in the last 24 hours about the whole question of whether the international community including Australia would provide any kind of assistance, be it police assistance or military assistance to East Timor," he said.
"There will be some further discussions during the course of this afternoon including with our ambassador and President Xanana Gusmao."
Apart from troops, Australia had police it could deploy at short notice, Mr Downer said.
The two nations had also discussed which other nations may be involved if Timor asked for help.
But Mr Downer made it clear that Australia wants any intervention to have majority support in Timor.
"I have made the point that we are ready to assist East Timor but that would require a formal request from the government and by a formal request I mean a letter signed by the president and the prime minister, and preferably the speaker of the parliament as well but most importantly by both the president and the prime minister."
Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri, from the ruling Fretilin Party, last week managed to stave off a challenge sparked by recent violent outbreaks.
Senior members of his own party have accused Dr Alkatiri of mishandling the violence and inflaming tensions in the tiny country.
Tensions subsided after the aborted challenge but new violence erupted in East Timor on Tuesday, leaving two dead and six injured.
It followed deadly clashes earlier in the month, stemming from protests by about 600 disgruntled ex-soldiers who deserted after claiming discrimination. Their demonstrations turned violent, resulting in five deaths.
quarta-feira, maio 24, 2006
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Atenção Timorenses!!
Nunca é demais lembrar o golpe militar de 1964 que levou o Brasil ao desastre economico-social que vivemos hoje. A primeira razão estava ligada aos interesses de capitalistas de saquearem esta nação com a ajuda dos de fora (americanos),empresários e banqueiros arrivistas e apátrias. A segunda questão foi de ordem política. O governo derrubado do presidente João Goulart propunha reformas de base e, principalmente, fazer a reforma agrária nos inúmeros latifundios deste país. Este governo defendia algumas posições de esquerda e tinha por objetivo melhorar a qualidade de vida da população, em particular o ensino e a saúde. O governo Norte-americano viu nesta atitude uma ameaça aos seus interesses presentes e futuros e financiou uma quadrilha de militares, bandidos, que mergulhou este pais numa ditadura por mais de 30 anos.
O que há de comum entre o golpe de 64 no Brasil e a atual situação em Timor? Um anti-comunismo virulento (dos de fora), doentio, que na verdade esconde a voracidade de grupos estrangeiros e, possivelmente, de timorenses arrivista em pilhar o petróleo de seu território ou qualquer outra riqueza desta parte da ilha de Timor. Gostaria de acrescentar que sou partidário de uma nação democrática, que possibilite o desenvolvimento socioeconomico, o mais igualitariamente possível, para que a população possa ter direito a uma vida digna. Já ultrapassei a miragem da ditadura do proletariado que as evidencias históricas revelaram sanguinárias. Hoje defendo as idéias da justiça social e de um Estado transparente no uso do dinheiro público, democrático e ambientalmente sustentavel
Saudações
Alfredo Cesar
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